Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1887-10-07
The Science of Sails.

LINZ D DAiu 3 WHY, une HrSG neeO tOf
all effective sail is rigid leading edge
or weather leech; obtained in the
square and lug sails by the drag of
bovine, in the lateen-sail by the yard
or bone of the sail-wing itself, in stay
sails by the rigidity Of the mast or
supporting stay, and in jibs by the
powerful hosting purchase and use of
chain for halyards. Before the intro
duction of chain, the jib, like the first
string of a violin, was constantly get
ting out of tune, and in want of setting
up.
Another point in a good sail is that
the after-edge, when held in place by
the sheet, should be as nearly upright
or vertical as possible, This edge is
always parallel to the seams Of the
sail, and, like the after-edge of wing,
uncontined by anything more than 9
hem or Gghtest of rope, save where
reef-band requires strength. The cloth
at this edge of a jib is at times seen
shaking while the rest of the canvas is
as still as though frozen, and it is better
the wind should pass it freely so than
be grit in or held by it. The cloths
of jib are cut little convex upon the
leading edge, and unless the position
of the sheet were carefully fixed with
respect to this convexity, the huff of
jib would be concave instead of straight
when roped and hoisted.
There is an old sea saying, often used,
too, by landsmen without knowing why,
viz: II knew him by the cut of his
jio, !" a jib really having more cut about
it than other sails.
Though few practical sail-makers, OF
users of them, know really much of
algebraic formula, they have their
rules, handed down to them from old
time, for cutting out sails, and rs wind
and water are very conservat.o e1e-
ments, they seldom go far wron@ Among
these rules is that Of working by thirds.
| that is, when at loss as to the best
proportion for one thing toward another,
to take third. The boat always takes
her third Of the fish caught, % yard of
lug-sail is slung a third from the end,
the most convex part OF the iib is at
one-third Of the huff from the track,
and the sheet exactly opposite this
point A pious adherence to this old
mystery saves much calculation and
trouble, and when builders thought
third good proportion Of beam to
length, fair amount of stability was
insured to our ships. Sailors speak Of
sail as lifting or pressing quite indie
pendently OF its power of driving a
vessel ahead. All jibs are lifting sails,
which do their work with least tendency
to force vessels lee side down. They
are safe sails to jibe or veer round UNI
der before the wind; hence, perhaps,
the term "jbe." The angle at which
the weather edge of :. iib stands has
much to do with this lifting quality, for
o cutters foresail, though triangular,
is not found lifting sail. Next to
jib, the sail which has most of this
power is no doubt the lateen latin p
sail of the South, particularly as set
upon the foremost Of a felucca, while
the splendid lifting power Of the latean-
sail may have led to it's being retained
as the head sail in the strange combs
nation OF rigs seen in the Turkish
vessel which is known as xebec In
many respects the rig of an old French
man-of-war ketch, with her stay-sail
and two jibs in place of the foremost
and great lateen-sail, is an improve
ment, her stay-sail and jibs being
lighter to handle, though in sea-way
her long bowsprit would be an obiec-
ton, and with the wind q triIc free,
the single spread OF canvas for the
lateen-sail would give moro speed
Robert c. Leslie, IN HaTpe9's MayA-